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Falcons find winning formula at LaVille

LAKEVILLE — John Glenn worked out a little equation Friday night — Defense plus Josh Anderson equals win.
The visiting Falcons held LaVille scoreless from the field during an 11-minute stretch in the second half, and Anderson scored a game-high 20 points and grabbed six rebounds in a 52-39 Northern State Conference boys basketball win between future first-round Bi-County Tournament opponents at Dale E. Cox Gymnasium.
With LaVille leading scorer Jordyn Williams sitting out the evening for disciplinary reasons, Glenn’s man-to-man defense and full-court pressure seized control in the second half. Leading 32-31 with 3:37 left in the third quarter, Glenn then rattled off eight unanswered points as part of a larger 20-3 run.
“That’s going to have to be our calling card,” Glenn head coach Travis Hannah said of his team’s defense. “If you’ve watched us for the last five years, that’s just the kind of teams we have. Without Williams, LaVille doesn’t get as much penetration, but they’ve still got (Nick) Amor and (Andrew) Hostetler. We had Amor for six offensive rebounds in the first half and none in the second half; our kids really responded on the boards in the second half. We did a nice job against Hostetler. I think we wore (LaVille) down.”
Meanwhile, Anderson, a senior point guard and all-state football player, gave the Lancers all sorts of matchup problems in the halfcourt and on the glass. An Anderson rebound bucket gave the Falcons the lead for good, 30-29 with 5 minutes left in the third frame, and a second putback off a high-flying offensive carom with 1:55 to go in the third tipped off the 20-3 streak.
“Josh has got to be our rock,” Hannah said. “Josh is the kind of player that other teams have to worry about so much that they’ll do anything they can to stop him when the game’s on the line. That will open up easy shots for other guys. In any game Josh is probably going to be one of the best athletes on the floor no matter who we’re playing.”
Count LaVille head coach Michael Edison an Anderson fan.
“The first thing that comes to mind — and this is a huge compliment to Anderson — is the word tough,” Edison said. “He’s just the type of kid you would love to have. I didn’t love him tonight, but when I scout I love watching him.”
Also for the Falcons, Tyler Prentkowski chipped in 10 points, including a pair of first-quarter treys; freshman Jake Strong added nine points and a game-leading four steals; and senior forward Tom Knape secured eight rebounds, handed out nine steals and provided a fine defensive effort against Amor, a junior forward.
“All our kids contributed, and you hear coaches say that all the time,” Hannah said. “Tyler Prentkowski buried two 3s to get us going. Austen Hayes and Michael Schmeltz played great defense. Jake Strong did a nice job defensively.
“What Tom Knape gives us is the definition of leadership,” he added. “He has that quarterback mentality that he had on the football field and brings that to the basketball floor. He was on Amor; Amor’s 6-5 and Tom’s probably 5-11. They were lobbing to Amor, but Tom hung in there.”
Amor and classmate Hostetler scored 12 points apiece to lead the Lancers. Amor also pulled down a game-best nine boards. However, the Lancers, saddled with foul trouble from the first stanza, struggled to a 2-of-16 finish from 3-point range and turned the ball over 14 times — seven in the fourth quarter.
“Jordyn’s a key player, and anytime you don’t have a player of his caliber it’s something for a team to get used to,” Edison said. “I thought our players handled it really well. Foul trouble hurt us, and Glenn is a physical team, without fouling. They did a good job following our cutters and getting on our shooters.
“The key point, I think, is we were stuck on 31 for a long time,” he added. “Sometimes just a few key possessions can change a game.”
As for the Lancers’ leading scorer, Edison said as of Friday night, Williams would be ready to go against North Judson next Friday.
“One thing I’m always curious to see is how a player will react when they have to sit out,” Edison said. “Jordyn got here on time. He was asking questions. He was getting chairs, being a servant, and not sulking. Those are key qualities.”
Glenn hosts Argos Wednesday.
• JOHN GLENN 52,
LaVILLE 39
At Lakeville
Score by quarters
Glenn: 16 26 34 52
LaVille: 10 23 31 39
GLENN (52): Nathan Stegemiller 0 2-2 2, Pat Wolff 0 0-2 0, Josh Anderson 5 10-12 20, Tom Knape 2 1-3 5, Tyler Prentkowski 4 0-0 10, Adam Stull 0 0-0 0, Austen Hayes 1 2-3 4, Jake Strong 3 3-3 9, Michael Schmeltz 1 0-0 2. TOTALS: 16 18-25 52.
LaVILLE (39): Cameron Gurtner 0 0-0 0, Blake Berger 0 0-1 0, Jason Duerring 0 0-1 0, Landon Manuel 2 0-0 4, Jeff Haygood 2 1-4 5, Andrew Hostetler 3 4-4 12, Nick Amor 6 0-0 12, Justin Baker 3 0-0 6. TOTALS: 16 5-10 39.
3-point goals: Glenn 2 (Prentkowski), LaVille 2 (Hostetler); Turnovers: Glenn 14, LaVille 14; Rebounds: Glenn 31 (Knape 8), LaVille 21 (Amor 9); Assists: Glenn 8 (Knape 3), LaVille 8 (Hostetler 3); Steals: Glenn 8 (Strong 4), LaVille 3; Fouls (fouled out): Glenn 17 (Knape), LaVille 24 (Baker); Records: Glenn 3-4 (1-0 NSC), LaVille 2-2 (0-1 NSC).